


This is How My World Ends

by dayishujia



Series: Sheith Tumblr Prompts [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Accidental Identity Reveal, Angst, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Galra Keith (Voltron), Identity Reveal, M/M, Mentions of PTSD, Misunderstandings, Pre-Relationship, Running Away to Solve Problems, tags will be added as needed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-30
Updated: 2016-09-02
Packaged: 2018-07-27 15:31:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7624123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dayishujia/pseuds/dayishujia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Keith accidentally reveals himself as Galra to Shiro during a sparring session.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> For an anon on tumblr.
> 
> For the prompt:
>
>>  
>> 
>> _sheith prompt~ shiro and keith are sparring, keith has been really stressed lately and accidentally shifts into his galra form (nice timing to reveal your true self keith) and hurting shiro, and everything gets worse after that (yes i'm here to suffer)_  
> 

All it took was one, well placed sucker punch for Keith’s world to come crashing down around him.

Things had been going rough lately; it was getting harder and harder to keep his secret these days. They were closing in on the Galra Empire, inching closer to a major confrontation and tensions were rising.

Everyone was getting antsy. But for Keith, its what he’s been waiting for his entire life: the end of the oppressive Galra Empire; what his parents fought and died for.

The anxiety was dripping off him, itching at his skin. He knew he was being irritable, more so than usual, but he couldn’t help it.

So when Shiro suggested a sparring match, Keith was hard pressed to say no. He needed to spend some energy – once he was dead tired on the floor he knew he would be able to rest a little. But it would also be a reason to spend time with Shiro as well.

Keith liked Shiro. He was a swell guy. He was the kind of guy Keith felt safe around, as if he could divulge any secret and it would be okay. However, Keith knew his Galra secret wasn’t just any secret. After what his people did to Shiro – the months of horrific abuse, forced combat-to-the-death, and mutilation, and maybe even things Shiro himself didn’t know – Keith didn’t want to test Shiro’s good nature.

Keith enjoyed the status quo. He worked hard to maintain it. Every day since he landed on Earth all those years ago, he worked hard to convince everyone he met he was just another human person.

And of course, because it was the one thing he thought Shiro wouldn’t understand, Keith momentarily lost control of the magic used to maintain his human front.

Keith didn’t notice anything was wrong at first. He pulled a fist back to return the blow but froze instantly when he saw the look on Shiro’s face.

“What?” he asked. “Shiro?”

Shiro didn’t budge. His beautiful eyes were impossibly wide and Keith thinks he knows what that means – he was having a flashback.

Keith dropped his stance and moved to hold Shiro’s arms, to try and ground him in the present, to let him know he was okay and safe but Shiro took a wobbly step back, away from him.

“Shiro?” It was then that Keith saw it. Instead of his normal, pale human skin he saw his lavender Galra skin. He retracted his hand as if he had been burned. His eyes darted between his hands, unbelieving what he saw. It was a trick, right? It had to be. He would never be so careless….

When he looked back up, Shiro was gone.

Keith locked himself up in his room. He returned to his human form, maintaining it all the way to his private quarters before it faded behind closed doors. 

He wanted to cry. To scream. To shout. It just wasn’t fair. All that hard work – for nothing.

Realizing that he was what triggered Shiro’s PTSD flashback crushed him. How could he face Shiro now? All he wanted to do was keep Shiro safe. But when he did that to him? How could he ever forgive himself?

Absently, he knew Shiro might be telling the others about what happened on the training deck. It was only a matter of time before the others would find out.

Resolving to solve the matter before anyone else did, Keith packed a bag. He threw a few changes of clothes inside and zipped it. That’s all he would need. He made sure he had his trusty dagger before putting back on his human façade.

Keith poked his head out into the hall. No one. Good.

He slowly crept out into the hall. He stuck to the shadows, quickly making his way into the shuttle bay.

Throwing his bag into the first ship he saw, Keith felt a little guilty for abandoning his friends and then stealing from them.

Part of him wanted to stay. He wanted to see how it would play out – surely his friends weren’t bigoted, they had to know that not all Galra were like the few they’ve met. Not the entire race were like the ones that infiltrated the Castle, the ones that sent mutilated monster after monster after them, the ones that put bounties on their heads, the ones that nearly killed each of them half a dozen times. Surely they recognized all that Keith has done for not only Voltron but also for them, as a friend .

Yet, Keith didn’t want to risk it. He didn’t want to see how their faces would contort in horror over the revelation of his true nature. He didn’t want to see that on any of them. And he certainly didn’t know how to face Shiro. So he jumped into the vehicle and left, without so much a word.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I decided to write a little more for this AU. 
> 
> Much thanks goes to [The_Good_Witch_of_Babble](http://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Good_Witch_of_Babble/pseuds/The_Good_Witch_of_Babble)  
> who really worked up my excitement for this story with their lovely comment, which I'm still grinning like a fool over - because _damn_ I never thought a story of _mine_ would inspire such a long comment. 
> 
> Nevertheless, writing long stories gives me some anxiety so I can't promise how long this will be, should it continue. Right now, the story still says its complete. That's more for my peace of mind than anything else. I'll continue to write so long as there's ideas and support or I'll turn to work on other AUs. 
> 
> So, uh. Without further ado....

It took Shiro a little while to work up the courage to seek out Keith. Hours had passed since the incident in the training deck and he still hadn’t managed to sort it all out by the time he started to make his way towards Keith’s room.

What _exactly_ had happened? Surely it was just his mind playing tricks on him. They were all exhausted. He had to be seeing things.

That’s what he decided it was. They had been so overworked – there was a chance Keith just landed a well-aimed blow and momentarily knocked him out. Maybe Shiro just had a bad dream.

There was a part of him that wrote the incident off as a trick of the mind. Any trick of the mind. Shiro wanted to believe that. He wanted that to be true so bad that it ached deep in his chest.

Whatever it was, he knew he had to talk about it with Keith.

Keith was a good person. They grew up together – at least through their Garrison years. And they were _friends_. He watched Keith grow and change; even just in the short time they had been Voltron paladins, Keith flourished. He mellowed out, formed friendships, both of which Shiro would have been hard pressed to believe Keith would be able do just a few years ago.

Most of all, Keith looked _happy_.

Shiro was so proud of Keith. So proud, that sometimes it was all he could think about. The feeling swelled in him, warmed him. And he loved how happiness looked on Keith. Some days, he just radiated. It was a real wonderful thing to witness.

Whatever was going on, he absolutely had to talk to Keith about it. So he took a fortifying breath, steeled his nerves, and knocked on Keith’s door.

Silence.

Maybe he was sleeping? So Shiro tried again, a little louder this time. He didn’t really want to disturb Keith, but he wanted to talk it out before the morning came and the others were around. This was the sort of thing that was best discussed and worked out in private.

Still nothing.

Shiro pressed his hear to the seam of the door. He couldn’t hear anything – though the doors on the ship were thicker than the ones back home and thus were probably better at muting noise.

Shiro took a step back and stared at the door. It wasn’t as if he expected it to suddenly open or anything... but a sign that Keith was all right on the other side would’ve been nice.

He glanced at the keypad.

There was always a chance that Keith didn’t lock the door. Shiro didn’t want to intrude but...

Nevertheless, he places his hand on the keypad. Just in case. Keith had a habit of forgetting to lock it behind him and, while Shiro didn’t want to violate his privacy, he wanted to be sure Keith was all right. And, sure enough, the door opened.

Shiro took a small step inside.

The room was in its usual state of disorder – an organized mess, as Keith always called it. His blanket was thrown haphazardly over the bed, there were a few items of clothing on the floor. The chair was yanked out from under the desk and a few wardrobe drawers were open.  

Nothing was out of place. Except for Keith, who was still nowhere to be seen.

The door slid shut behind him audibly.

“Keith?” he called. He walked farther inside, dragging his fingers along the bedframe. The rooms were small; unless Keith managed to find some nook or cranny to hide in, he wasn’t there. Nevertheless, Shiro still asked, “Are you here?”

Nothing. Not a sound.

Shiro’s eyebrows furrowed. He wracked his brain for another place in the Castle where Keith might hide in. A few came up readily, but from the corner of his eye, Shiro abruptly noticed that the open wardrobe drawers were nearly empty and the duffle bag Keith had hanging off the edge of his desk was gone.

Shiro turned on his heel and left the room. He went a little farther down the chrome corridor and knocked on Lance’s door.

“What’s up?” Lance asked groggily. He was leaning heavily on the doorframe in his disheveled pajamas – he had clearly been sleeping.

Shiro felt guilty for waking him in what was probably the middle of the night and he spit out an apology before asking, “Has Keith been by here?” He glanced over Lance’s head and scanned the room. Unless Keith was hiding in the bathroom or in the wardrobe, he wasn’t there. But maybe Lance had at least _seen_ him.

“Keith?” Lance stood a little straighter. He cleared his throat and looked a little more awake. “Last time I saw him he was off to the training deck with you. Why? What happened?”

“A little miscommunication,” Shiro answered. Of course that was a bit of an oversimplification of what happened but he didn’t want to disclose everything just yet. He wanted to talk to Keith first. He had to _find_ Keith. “It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. Sorry for waking you up.”

“’S fine,” Lance slurred. He hid a jaw-breaking yawn behind his hand. “G’night, man.”

Shiro nodded. “ Yeah. Good night.”

Figuring that all the other paladins were sleeping and not likely to hide Keith, Shiro decided to check all the likely places in the Castle where Keith might go. When Keith didn’t turn up in any of them, Shiro grew increasingly anxious.

Keith had to be somewhere on the ship and the ship was only so big. He checked the kitchen, the dining hall, training deck, medical wing, and almost everywhere else. Making his way toward the shuttle bay, Shiro’s footfalls increased in speed. He doubted Keith would be there but there was a chance that maybe he was messing with some poor vehicle so Shiro was going to check anyway.

At this point, Shiro just wanted to see Keith, nothing else mattered. Keith could deck him with all the power in his body and Shiro would still be glad to see him. He wanted to see that Keith was okay – they could deal with everything else in due time. It just wasn’t that important.

But when he arrived at the shuttle bay, Keith was nowhere in sight. In fact, except for Shiro, the entire Castle was still.    

Shiro ran his hand through his hair and groaned. Maybe he should just go and try to get some sleep? Surely Keith will be at breakfast in the morning and Shiro was just worrying about nothing.

Just in case, Shiro glanced through the room once more – maybe Keith heard him coming and hid? – and that was when he noticed it: one of the pods was missing from its bay.

Shiro could’ve kicked himself for not noticing it sooner. The bay itself was a mess, all the pod’s hook-ups and wires were thrown aside haphazardly – a clear sign that someone was in a hurry to leave.

Endless possibilities raced through Shiro’s mind, each fighting for the forefront, but the one that stood out the most was the one that kept repeating, as if punctuating all the others: _Keith is gone_. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know if there's an interest in me keeping up with this AU! I hope this wasn't, like, horrifically bad or something. Just wanted to explore Shiro's immediate reaction to Keith leaving without warning so....
> 
>  


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so, y'all are just too nice to me. I wasn't expecting such an overwhelming amount of comments wanting this story to continue! 
> 
> I'm working on planning out and writing the whole of the story. It's getting interesting, if I may say so! Um, I just hope y'all'll continue to like it.
> 
> So much thanks for this chapter goes to my beta [eastwithasmile](http://eastwithasmile.tumblr.com) who helped me and everything.

Shiro woke Allura first.

He was standing outside the doors to her quarters before he even registered it. There was a moment where he hesitated – maybe, his mind told him, maybe he was blowing the situation out of proportion.

Out of everyone, Shiro was the one who knew Keith the best. He knew that Keith was a master at avoiding situations he wanted nothing to do with. Perhaps, his mind reasoned, Keith was just hiding in some dark corner of the ship he hadn’t checked yet.

The rest of him, however, urged him to knock. Despite hoping Keith was tucked away in some corner somewhere, Shiro knew that that wasn’t going to be the case.

He swallowed past the guilt and knocked before he could convince himself not to. It took a couple moments until the door slid open and Allura was standing there. She looked in a similar state as Lance did earlier when Shiro woke him: half asleep and exhausted. She was in her nightclothes, her eyes barely open as she covered her yawn. She didn’t look upset with him for waking her, so that was something.

“Shiro?” she asked, blinking sleep from her eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s Keith,” he answered without preamble. The words tumbled out of his mouth, mixing and slurring together. He ran his hands through his hair just to have something to do with them. Shiro looked over Allura’s head for a second and said, “I think he took a pod and left.”

Instantly, Allura appeared more awake than she had moments ago. She still rubbed sleep from her eyes, but this time with vigor. “What do you mean he’s gone?” She seemed to consider the information, and then waved her hand vaguely, gesturing down the hall. “He’s likely in the training room. You know how he can get.”

“I already checked. He isn’t there.” Shiro began to pace in front of Allura’s door; the need to use up some of the keyed-up nervous energy was consuming him and he didn’t think he could stop himself even if he wanted to.

The easy back-and-forth motion was putting him at ease, if only momentarily. Yet, the movement seemed to concern Allura.

“He’s not in his room either. I checked everywhere.”

“Shiro...” Allura started, clearly prepared to say something to soothe his nerves but Shiro interrupted her. 

“I really think he’s gone, Princess.” Shiro needed her to believe him, to help him think of something to do to find Keith and bring him home before anything bad happens.

Allura sighed. She glanced down the corridor and pulled her hair off her shoulders. “Come in,” she said, tugging him in with a gentle hand on his wrist. “Tell me everything.”

It didn’t take long for Shiro to explain the situation to Allura, not withholding even a single detail. If he felt conflicted about telling her about Keith suddenly morphing into a Galra, he pushed those feelings aside. Every detail was relevant.

He had just barely finished forcing the words ‘Keith’ and ‘Galra’ from his mouth before he had to take a moment, swallowing the bile that rose in his throat.

As expected, Allura didn’t readily believe him.

Her eyebrows knit as she leaned on her knees, staring in Shiro’s eyes, searching for any hint of deception. “What do you mean he’s Galra?” she asked. “He’s from Earth. Like you.”

“No,” Shiro shook his head. “I mean, he is – I don’t understand it either.”

Allura frowned. She leaned back, sitting straighter, and asked, “How did you discover this?”

“We were sparring,” he answered, as if it were so simple. He fidgeted a little and looked at his feet. “And.... It just... Look, I don’t really know either. All I know was one minute he was Keith and the next...”Shiro’s head dropped to his hands.

“Okay.” Allura stopped Shiro, her voice soft, comforting even. She leaned further back and closed her eyes, as if meditating on all the new information he’d given her. Shiro looked up at her, peeking through his fingers before rising, straightening his back. An involuntarily sigh ripped through him.

A moment later, Allura opened them and looked at Shiro. There was pain there, clear as day and Shiro rolled his bottom lip through his teeth. “Okay. We need to find him.”

Shiro nodded rapidly. Yes, he thought. Yes we do.

“We need to find him before someone else does,” she continued.

The ominous addition weighed on Shiro’s chest, making it harder to breathe. He forced his chest to expand, breathing in and out, “What are we going to do?”

Allura leaned toward Shiro, resting her elbows on her knees conspiratorially as if about to breathe a secret. “First,” Allura said with the conviction of a tried and true leader. “We’ll keep this between us. The others don’t need to now right now.”

Shiro froze – that wasn’t what he expected to hear. Yet he nodded anyway, despite any reservations he had. Naturally, he didn’t like the idea of hiding something so important from the others, seeing as it was about a teammate, but if Allura thought it was best, he would.

When he realized that keeping the news about Keith’s apparent true origins a secret from everyone was in order to avoid risking the possible bad reaction that might result, Shiro’s heart sunk. Considering the only interactions any of them had with Galra were less than amicable, bad reactions weren’t out of the question.

Recalling his own reaction, Shiro wholeheartedly agreed keeping it a secret for the time being was more than appropriate. He needed them all to be concerned about Keith, not hunting him down.

“You and I will see if we can track him,” Allura continued, oblivious to Shiro’s internal struggle. “For now, we’ll tell them that he’s sick.”

Shiro blinked. He wasn’t expecting that. Although, they probably would need an excuse for Keith’s sudden lack of presence in the Castle and that was as good as any. “Do you think that’ll work?”

“Probably not,” Allura admitted with a shrug. “But we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, go get some rest. I know you probably won’t sleep – ” she then gave him a meaningful glance – “but at least lay down for a while. We’ll talk again soon.”

Shiro nodded and promptly left to do as he was told.

Just as quickly as he arrived at Allura’s door, Shiro found himself standing in front of his own. He all but slammed his hand onto the keypad and stormed inside, sitting on his bed, if just because Allura told him to.

His skin itched and his mind raced; he needed to do something – anything. Keith was out there somewhere and, even though Shiro knew he was a capable pilot, this particular corner of the universe was unknown to all of them. Except for maybe Coran and Allura. And traveling in such a small pod was only safe for so long.

He let out a frustrated groan. He hated this. He didn’t want to sit around and just hope Keith came back on his own accord. Hoping did nothing; sitting around and praying accomplishes nothing. He knew from experience.

Shiro wanted to be out there, searching. It would be so easy to just go to his lion’s hanger and go searching on his own... however, he knew the help of Coran and Allura was vital. Even the help of the other paladins was going to be crucial when they inevitably discover the truth, provided they don’t turn their backs on Keith.

Despite his own feelings on the matter, Shiro did what the princess told him to do. If she thought waiting for a little while was best, he’d do it. So Shiro sat down on his bed, back against the wall so he could face the door. He knew it was a tad beyond ridiculous, but he wanted to be able to have an unobstructed view, just in case Keith happened walked in.

How he wished Keith would walk in.

Shiro’s heart sat heavily in his chest. He shifted, trying to get a little comfortable as he reviewed that evening’s events and wondering where things could’ve gone better.

There was a part of him that clung to the thought that Keith transforming into a Galran was but a trick of the mind. Maybe it was simply exhaustion playing nasty tricks on him, making him see things that weren’t there – it wouldn’t have been the first time.

But it had been so real.

He could no longer recall the memory he was thrown headfirst into at the unexpected sight of a Galran in Keith’s familiar clothing. Yet, when he finally came to, he found that he was no longer in the training room but dragging himself down the hall, his mind screaming at him, his body aching, and with Keith nowhere in sight.

He had been confused. His body was sore and he was exhausted; fear clung to him and, even though he recognized the safety of the Castle, he still tucked himself in some dark corner, cheek pressed to the cool chrome, to just breathe.

Of course, Keith’s disappearance from the Castleship told Shiro that what he saw hadn’t been anything less than reality. It was real. It had to be; otherwise Keith wouldn’t have felt the need to run away.

A frustrated noise clawed its way up and out of Shiro’s throat. He practically choked on it, burying his face in his hands and trying to force his mind to be blank.

At least, just for a little while.

 

 

Although he hadn’t managed to sleep even a wink, Shiro was the last to arrive to breakfast. He had dragged his feet down the hall, painfully aware that he wouldn’t see Keith sitting at the table, bickering with Lance or joking with Hunk. 

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” Lance teased, a wide shit-eating grin plastered on his face when Shiro finally shuffled through the door.

Shiro glanced at him but quickly averted his eyes. He simply wasn’t in the mood for Lance’s shenanigans after the events of last evening and, in order to remember to keep to Allura’s plan, he really needed to keep a level head.

Lance waved his spoon in Shiro’s general direction and asked, “Did you and Keith sleep well last night?”

Shiro froze in his tracks. His head shot up as he looked at Lance, horrified. “What?”

“Keith’s not here yet either,” Hunk said breezily. “We all just assumed he was with you.”

Hunk clearly hadn’t registered Shiro’s surprise or sudden discomfort. He raised his shoulders in a carefree shrug, scooping a generous amount of green sludge into a bowl, presumably for Shiro.

“Yeah.” Lance waggled his eyebrows suggestively. He glanced around, presumably looking for sign of Keith, and asked, “So? Where is he?”

“Uhh,” Shiro said stupidly. He glanced over at where Allura sat, moving the contents of her own breakfast bowl around with a spoon. She nodded at him encouragingly and he swallowed thickly, preparing the lie before speaking. “He’s um, not feeling well.”

“That’s right,” Allura confirmed immediately after the last syllable left Shiro’s mouth. She smiled comfortingly at the other three paladins. “He can join us later. Let’s let him rest.”

Shiro sighed, thankful that the conversation had been effectively lifted off his shoulders. He shuffled toward the table, dragging his feet. Hunk smiled at him as he passed Shiro his serving as he sunk into a chair.

“What’s wrong with him?” Pidge asked. Although she didn’t look up from their book, her voice had a tinge of concern.

“Just a little under the weather,” Allura answered just as easily as before. “No need to be concerned.”

“Should we be concerned?” Hunk asked. After Allura’s last statement, he was glancing suspiciously between Shiro and Allura, as if trying to sniff out a lie.

Shiro coughed into his fist and said, “No. He’ll be fine.”

Hunk looked at him through narrowed eyes, studying him but Shiro avoided his gaze in favor of the food. Shiro’s stomach ached a little from hunger, but he wasn’t sure how much he’d be able to actually eat. He’d have to think up a careful lie later to cover up his sudden lack of appetite. Would it be too suspicious if he said he was sick too?

After everyone was done eating the goop Coran so generously prepared and provided, Shiro volunteered to be the one to clean up.

Pidge was the first to excuse herself, saying she wanted to work on some new gadget or gizmo. What it was, Shiro wasn’t sure and, at the moment, he couldn’t bring himself to even feign a basic level of interest.

Lance went next, saying he wanted to get some training in while Keith was out of commission. “I can totally use this to my advantage,” he declared, flexing his arms. “Next time we spar, I’ll be able take Keith out!”

From where she still sat at the table, Allura heaved a sigh. Shiro glanced at her but looked away when she didn’t meet his gaze. He glanced around at the others, each going about their usual morning routine as if nothing was different.

Shiro sunk further in his chair with an internal groan. He startled when a hand pressed on his shoulder, a warm, heavy weight. Looking up, he saw Coran, who offered him a small smile. His usually jovial eyes were sad and Shiro knew instantly that Coran knew.

“So,” Hunk hummed, breaking the silence that hung between those left in the dining hall. He frowned when no one acknowledged him. “What’s wrong with Keith?”

Shiro’s eyebrows furrowed as he determinedly did not look up, instead busying himself with gathering the dirtied dishes.

“Like I said, he’s just a little under the weather,” Allura responded calmly. She gave Hunk an appeasing smile, in the hopes of relieving his concern. Shiro just hoped Hunk would stop asking questions. “He’ll be back to himself in no time.”

“Hm.” Hunk glanced at Shiro; Shiro could practically feel his eyes boring into the top of his head. “Since he missed breakfast, I can go bring him something,” he said. “If he’s sick, he needs to eat.”

“That’s quite all right,” Allura said quickly when it became clear that Shiro wasn’t going to respond. She maintained her smile. “I’ll bring something to him in a minute. You don’t have to worry.”

“I’ll go make him something extra healthy! Chuck full of vitamins and all the good stuff!” Coran declared animatedly before dashing back into the kitchen, looking absolutely tickled pink.

Shiro sighed, slumping his shoulders a little as he followed behind Coran with an armful of dishes. He had to hand it to Coran – he was definitely a good actor.

For his part, Hunk didn’t look convinced by their story yet he decided against pushing the topic further and dismissed himself from the dining hall, presumably to go find Pidge.

Allura heaved a sigh when Hunk finally left. She picked herself up and followed Shiro and Coran into the kitchen.

“Well, that went a little better than I expected,” she said once the door shut behind her. Shiro had dumped the dishes in the sink, ready to be washed – later. She offered both him and Coran, who had pulled out a chair and sat to wait for her, a small smile.

Shiro didn’t bother to try to return it.

Allura’s shoulders slumped. “Still, they won’t believe it for much longer. Hunk’s already suspicious.”

“So what do we do?” Shiro asked. He propped himself up against the cool, chrome colored countertop, still feeling sluggish and more than a little disenchanted.

“Before anything else, we should try to track the pod he took,” Allura said with some finality. Whether or not she believed it would work, Shiro couldn’t decipher.

“Good idea, Princess! We might be able to recover him before anyone realizes something’s fishy,” Coran declared cheerfully and began walking toward the control room.

For the first time since he realized Keith was missing, Shiro felt hope bloom in his chest. It was just a little, but it was there.

Allura smiled at Shiro once more; a little wider than last. Shiro glanced at her and managed something of a smile. Judging by her slight change in expression, it was probably grotesque. They then followed Coran, staying just a few steps behind him the entire way.

“It’ll be fine,” Allura said, no louder than a whisper. She touched Shiro’s arm gently as if to somehow anchor this thought into Shiro, to make him believe it. Shiro wanted to believe it. “We’ll find him.”

Shiro shook his head, flinching away from her touch. “I’m not so sure,” he said. “If he really is....” Shiro swallowed around the word ‘Galra’. It tasted sour on his lips. “Then he left because he didn’t think we’d understand.”

“The Galra are the enemy of the known universe. They conquered and enslaved entire planets for thousands of years. If he is really Galran, he must harbor an immense amount of guilt.” Allura paused. What she was thinking about, Shiro couldn’t tell but her expression was sad and pained. “But I can remember a time when it wasn’t like this. When the Galra and my people were allies.”

“Then they killed your people. Your father. Coran’s family.” Shiro wasn’t sure what his point was, but he couldn’t help but be skeptical of her apparent positivity.

“That is true.” Allura smiled at him, a soft, little smile as she explained, “But neither Coran or I begrudge the entire Galra race for the sins of the few. And we will prove that to Keith. Once we bring him home safely.”

Shiro sighed. “I only hope its that easy.”

Once in the control room with the door securely shut behind them, Allura pulled up the trackers of the Castle’s individual pods, most of which were still parked in their hangers. The one Keith took, however, was taking it’s time sending its location.

“Okay,” she hummed. Her blue eyes scanned the electronic image before them, watching as the information they feared appeared on the holographic screen. “It seems he figured out there was a tracker and it’s been destroyed. We can’t track the pod.”

Shiro groaned. He cursed Keith, cursed his tendencies and his distrust. But most of all, he cursed himself. If he hadn’t reacted the way he did, if he could’ve just.... well, then Keith might still be there. He should’ve been able to prevent this.

“We have to find something else,” Allura said quietly, her hand coming down to rest on Shiro’s shoulder. He startled at their sudden proximity. “We’ll find him, Shiro. I promise you.”

“What about his lion?” Shiro asked. “Can it track him down?”

Allura frowned in thought. She considered it for a moment before answering, “Perhaps. I suppose we can try it. It might take some time, however. The Red Lion can be volatile, remember.”

“That doesn’t matter,” Shiro answered quickly, shaking his head as he did. “So long as we find Keith.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments make me smile like a fool, so if you please? I love the feedback ^___^


	4. Chapter 4

Keith drove the pod as far as it would go, as fast as it would go. He knew he wouldn’t feel better until there was some real distance between himself and the paladins of Voltron. 

There was a huge part of him that felt guilty for abandoning his friends. 

Without him, they were down a paladin and couldn’t form Voltron until a replacement was found. He didn’t doubt that they’d find another paladin, a better paladin, a paladin they could trust wholly. It was with that in mind that he pushed all the guilt he felt aside and focused on the task at hand – getting away.

Keith intended to fly until the pod’s tank was empty. As he piloted, all the things he was going to need to do flitted through his mind. He was going to need to collect some supplies if he was going to last more than a couple days on his own. He needed food, clothing, shelter, fuel... except he didn’t have much on him by way of money. He had been in such a rush to get out of the Castle that a resource like money didn’t even occur to him. 

Keith gritted his teeth and increased the speed. 

He landed on the first planet he came across that registered as hospitable on the pod’s scanners. 

Entering the atmosphere this time was worse of a ride in such a small vehicle than it was in Allura’s Castle, in his former Lion or even in Voltron. When the pod finally landed on the surface of the planet, Keith felt more than a little ill from the turbulence. 

He resolved himself with a couple deep breaths and jumped out of the pod, landing shakily on his feet. 

The inhabitants of the planet barely gave him a passing glance, like it was commonplace to see just any sort of alien just walking about. And Keith supposed it probably was. Ultimately, it was for the better. He didn’t want to be noticed; it would be easier if he weren’t memorable in the slightest, especially if the paladins chose to hunt him down.

Keith adjusted his jacket with a firm tug and pushed that thought aside. 

It had been a long while since he’d been on a planet other than Earth. Even as a member of the Voltron paladins, they never stayed on one planet for too long before they were moving on to the next. Keith had almost forgotten what things on other planets looked like.

Luckily for him, the storefront nearest him was easily recognizable this galaxy’s version of a corner store. Walking inside, Keith did his best to just look like any other consumer in the joint all the while stuffing his pockets with whatever edibles he could get his hands on. 

He wasn’t proud of what he was doing, but he promised himself it would be a one-off – if at all possible – a minor incident on his path towards saving the universe from the Galra terror. 

It was going fine. Keith was gathering enough food to last him until the next planet, when he got a little too ambitious and was caught. The alien glaring back at him had a bruising grip on his wrist and spit out whistles and grunts in various intonations. Whatever the language on this planet was, Keith didn’t know it. Nevertheless, he was aware he was being scolded for stealing but absolutely had no other clue as to what the lifeform was saying. 

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” an oddly familiar voice exclaimed, coming in between him and the presumed shopowner. The grip on his wrist lessened until it was gone entirely; Keith withdrew the hand and rubbed at the wrist. 

The pair in front of him spoke the universal language, one Keith had gotten used to hearing upon his sudden re-entry into space and the one he had to pretend he didn’t know when Allura and Coran frantically taught them all the basics. 

From behind, Keith thought that he sort of recognized the humanoid conversing easily back and forth with the shopowner. He watched the exchange closely, as something exchanged hands and the owner spat one more thing at Keith – probably a curse – before slithering away. 

“Who ever would’ve thought I’d find a Voltron paladin committing theft?” The humanoid turned, grinning at Keith. 

“Rolo?” Keith stumbled back a little out of surprise. The man didn’t appear to have changed a single bit since the paladins left Rolo and his partner on an uninhabited planet with a broken ship.

“The one and only,” he said, waving his hand about in a fancy flourish. Rolo’s eyes darted quickly around the store, no doubt looking for a sign of another paladin. “So howzit. Where are your friends?”

Keith scowled at the mention, although he assumed he should’ve expected it from an acquaintance like Rolo. “Not here,” he said stiffly. He shoved his hands into his jacket pockets, wincing a little when they crunched from the bags of foodstuffs he jammed in there. “I’m on my own now.”

Rolo blinked, surprised. Clearly, it wasn’t the answer he was expecting and he wasn’t able to keep the disbelief from his voice when he asked, “What do you mean on your own? Have a squabble with the boyfriend or somethin’?”

Keith’s ears immediately turned bright red. “He’s not –“ he spat out. “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Rolo only laughed at Keith’s embarrassed display and clapped him over the shoulder with such force that Keith stumbled forward. “Sure,” he agreed breezily. “Hey, look. If you’re on your own now, why not come along with me and Nyma?”

“I don’t need help,” Keith snapped. Silently, he knew it would be foolish to not go with Rolo. That pair knew what they were doing; they were experienced in dealing with and avoiding the Galra. Keith wasn’t, not anymore.

“Whoa, there,” Rolo took a small step back and held up in hands in the familiar universal sign of surrender. “Didn’t mean it like that. Its just that you clearly don’t know how the universe works.”

Keith bristled. “I do too!”

“Really?” Rolo’s eyebrows climbed his forehead. There was a smile tugging at his mouth as he pointed over his shoulder at the shopkeeper with his thumb and said, “Cuz that guy there was about to cut your wrist off for stealin’.”

Keith glanced back at the shopowner who was very obviously watching him and Rolo talk. The alien’s eyes narrowed and Keith groaned. “Fine,” he said, eyebrows knitted together. “Fine.”

Rolo then fixed Keith with a grin and clapped him over the back once more. “Good to have you aboard.”

 

As the hours turned to days, keeping Lance, Hunk, and Pidge convinced that Keith was just momentarily out of commission was getting harder to do.

Lance was absolutely giddy for the chance to get a leg up on Keith. He spent most of his spare time in the training hall working with the bot and exercising as much as he could before collapsing, since Keith wasn’t there to fight him for the time or space. 

Ultimately, Pidge wasn’t entirely worried about Keith one way or the other. Sure, she expressed concern for Keith’s condition when it didn’t seem to improve, but she ultimately left the caretaking to Shiro and Allura and kept herself busy with her own projects. 

It was Hunk who gave Allura and Shiro the most grief. He kept insisting on helping them take care of Keith, urging them to take a break to take care of themselves while Hunk took over Keith’s caretaking for a little while. He was constantly offering to bring food to Keith’s quarters, to bring him his extra sweater and even his blanket. He concocted new and interesting food to try and lift Keith’s spirits and urge him to get better faster. Keeping Hunk out of Keith’s room and from discovering the truth was the most difficult. 

By the end of the day, Shiro was exhausted. He found himself sitting in the control room, looking out the ship’s windows at the galaxy beyond with his head in his hands. His mind wandered as he thought of Keith, where he went, what he must’ve been feeling, and how to find him. He was so enraptured by his own thoughts that he hadn’t heard the doors open or even noticed the body coming to rest next to him.

“He’s not in his room,” the voice said. Shiro’s head shot up and saw Hunk’s sad face. Hunk wasn’t looking at him, but out the windows at the stars. His eyes looked warn and sad, and guilt flooded Shiro. “Is he?”

Shiro searched his friend’s expression and tried to find the strength to continue the lie. “No,” he said, no louder than a whisper, when he decided the strength wasn’t there to find. Shiro put his chin back into his hands and looked out at the stars again. “He’s not.”

Hunk nodded solemnly. He still didn’t turn to look at him and Shiro wondered if he was disappointed in him for lying, if Hunk was mad. Yet, there wasn’t a drop of anger to be found in his voice when he asked, “Where’d he go?”

Shiro shrugged helplessly. “I don’t know.”

“Why’d he go?”

Shiro scrubbed a hand over his face. The whole thing was like a nightmare, one that persisted into the waking hours, one he couldn’t get any reprieve from. 

“We, uh.” He swallowed thickly. Words to describe what passed between himself and Keith flittered through his mind in an unorganized mess. “Fought.” Shiro shook his head. “I mean... there was a misunderstanding.”

Hunk nodded. He exhaled loudly, blinking up at the stars. “He’ll come around,” he said eventually, patting Shiro’s knee as he did. “Keith gets you, you know?”

“I’m not so sure.” Shiro croaked, sounding like he choked on his own spit. Under any other circumstances, he would’ve found it mortifying but, in that moment, he was just too exhausted. “It was... It wasn’t like any misunderstanding we’ve had in the past.”

“Well,” Hunk sighed. “If he doesn’t then, you know, we’ll find him. Things’ll work out. They always do.”

Shiro turned and stared at Hunk and it felt as if it was the first time, like he never really saw him before. Hunk just smiled back and squeezed his shoulder in the same fashion that Keith used to. Shiro wasn’t sure if Hunk was purposefully mimicking the motion but he was thankful all the same. It was strangely comforting; it was like he could almost see Keith reflected in Hunk’s eyes for the briefest of moments.

Hunk smiled a little wider at Shiro and gently shook him. “It’ll be fine,” he repeated, sounding surer of it that time. “Trust me, man. And I, uh, I won’t tell Lance or Pidge yet.”

Shiro nodded. He turned forward again and let his head hang a little between his shoulders, chin in his hand once more. “Thanks.” 

“Yeah.” Hunk nodded. He let his hand fall off Shiro’s shoulder and down onto the floor. He leaned back and looked up toward the ceiling. “Maybe we can get him back before they notice. You think?”

Despite himself, Shiro laughed. It was an awful sound – so he thought – punctuated with a loud snort. “I don’t think so,” he said. “I’m sure Pidge’ll catch on soon enough. Then we’ll have to tell Lance.”

“You’ll have to tell Lance what?”

The boys turned quickly, nearly knocking heads when they both moved in the same direction. At the door was Allura. She approached them slowly, walking as if on a cloud, her hands clasped behind her back. She was smiling softly and looking between them curiously.

“Hi, princess,” Hunk stuttered. Allura raised a hand in greeting. 

Shiro answered Allura’s question after a long pause. “We were just talking about Keith.” Allura’s eyes darted toward Hunk and there was a spark of panic there but Shiro waved his hand about as if to dispel it, explaining quickly, “It’s okay. Hunk knows.”

Allura’s shoulders relaxed visibly but her body was still taut with tension. “Oh.” She came closer to the boys and sat next to Shiro on the floor, her legs crossed in front of her. “Okay.”

Hunk glanced between the pair of them and asked, stage whispering to Shiro, “The princess knows too?”

Shiro nodded, humming, “Yeah. Yeah, she does.”

“Okay.” Hunk nodded. “All right. Then, let’s find Keith.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> its probably not that great but i kept you guys waiting for a few weeks now, i think, so i went ahead and posted.
> 
> comments would be adored!

**Author's Note:**

> [find me on tumblr](http://lilmissginge.tumblr.com/)   
>  [prompt me on tumblr](http://lilmissginge.tumblr.com/ask)


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